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Megumi huffs as he shuffles through his closet, flicking through his sweatshirts as he scowls slightly. He knew he wasn’t the best with keeping up with his laundry, but he was almost positive that his green sweatshirt was in here yesterday. He sighs as he starts over at the beginning of his closet, carefully inspecting each item of clothing for the third time.
He grunts, resorting to grabbing just a plain black hoodie and he tugs it on over his head before heading out the door to the kitchen.
As he turns the corner, he sees a familiar head of pink hair hunched over a bowl of food, shoveling it into his mouth like it was his last meal.
“Morning.”
“Fushi!” Yuuji beams up at him from the table, mouth full of rice, “Good morning!”
“Don’t talk with your mouth full. Have you seen my green sweatshirt?”
“Huh?” Yuuji swallows, which seems like it takes considerable effort.
“My sweatshirt. The green crewneck.”
“Oh. Um, no, I don’t think I have. Maybe check the laundry room?” Yuuji adds, shrugging a little before shoving another large bite of rice into his mouth.
“Mm,” Megumi hums, crossing his arms over his chest, “Maybe. I’m gonna go check and then take a shower.”
“Okay!” Yuuji replies, scooping up his last bit of breakfast, “We’re still sparring after class today?”
Megumi nods, and Yuuji swallows again and nods back, “Cool, do you want breakfast? I can make you something by the time you’re ready.”
“Oh, sure. Thanks.” Megumi replies, shrugging a bit, and Yuuji smiles at him before he gets up and heads to the sink. Megumi watches him for a moment, heart stubbornly skipping, before he turns back towards the kitchen door, swallowing hard.
He turns down the hallway, heading towards the laundry room as he tried to shove down his beating heart.
He sighs, rubbing his temples as he opens the door to the laundry, shoving his Yuuji thoughts out of his mind. Scanning over the room, he finds it frustratingly empty with no sign of his sweatshirt.
Trudging back towards the bathroom, Megumi runs through he motions of his shower as he lets his mind wander, and as it does, it always leads back to the same place.
Yuuji.
He’d only known him for a few months, but those few months had brightened Megumi’s life in ways he didn’t even think was possible. He’d saved him all those months ago, for the sole reason that he could tell he was unlike anyone he’d ever met before in just a few hours. He still wasn’t exactly sure what it was that tugged at his gut to ask Gojo to save him, but as he’d sat there, Yuuji’s lifeless head pulled into his lap, he’d cried for the first time in years. And as he’d watched him rise from that box at the Exchange Event, the same need and desire to cry and tug him into his arms bubbled up again.
As he walks back into the kitchen after getting ready, he finds Yuuji still sitting at the table on his phone, feet propped up on the chair to his left, with some eggs settled on a bowl of rice, and lightly steaming miso soup placed in front of the seat across from him.
“You made this just now?”
“I had leftover rice and soup,” Yuuji shrugs, as Megumi pulls out his chair and takes a seat, “I hope you like it.”
Megumi just nods, picking up his chopsticks as he steals a glance at Yuuji across from him, tongue poking out between his teeth as he focuses on whatever game he was playing. He looks down and quickly begins to eat, body warming at the perfectly balanced flavors and the simple idea that it came from Yuuji.
“You want one of mine?” Megumi looks up as Yuuji keeps his eyes on his game, still focused as Megumi looks at him in confusion.
“One of what?”
“One of my sweatshirts. To replace your missing one.” He replies simply, eyes flicking over to him for just a moment before looking back to his phone.
“Oh,” Megumi manages to get out, feeling his ears get hot, “No, that’s okay. I have more than enough.”
“Okay! I’ll keep an eye out, but just let me know if you change your mind,” Yuuji responds, taking a moment before he sighs, and locks his phone, “Alright, I’m gonna go shower now. I’ll knock when I’m ready to head to class?”
“No way, you’re always late.”
“Not true! I can get anywhere in a pinch,” Yuuji argues, standing up. Megumi rolls his eyes, but Yuuji still smiles at him as he heads towards the door, “See you in a bit!”
“See you.”
Yuuji walks out the door, and Megumi groans, shoving his bowl away a bit as his head falls onto his folded arms on the table.
“Fushiguuuro!”
“What do you want?”
“Where are you going?” Yuuji asks curiously, bouncing up next to him.
“What does it look like?” He lifts up his laundry basket, and Yuuji glances down, “Got a mission assignment from Gojo this morning, so I gotta pack.”
“Oh. Another one?” Yuuji asks, deflating a little bit as he trails behind him when they reach the laundry room, “Didn’t you just go on one last week?
“Yeah, shockingly, curses still exist even after you kill a different one.”
“I know ,” Yuuji huffs with a head shake, “You’ve just been doing a lot of solo missions recently. I don’t want you to burn out.”
“I’ll be fine, stop worrying so much.” Megumi sighs, hoisting his laundry basket on top of the machines.
“I’m not worried, I’m concerned!” Yuuji argues, and Megumi looks over at him, unimpressed, and he doubles down, “They’re different!”
“Well, you don’t need to be concerned about me, then. I’m fine.” Megumi replies, opening up the washing machine.
“Okay,” Yuuji replies, unconvinced, “But you’ll tell them if it’s too much?”
“Yes, I’ll tell them. Now quit hovering.”
“I’m not hovering,” Yuuji pouts as he hops up on the washing machine next to him, “So when do you leave?”
“Tomorrow morning.”
“Do you wanna watch a movie tonight then?”
“I need sleep, Itadori.” Megumi gives him a look and Yuuji throws his hands up in defense.
“I know! We can have an early night, like we can eat our dinner while watching.” Yuuji tries, and Megumi sighs a little, before he clocks his words a bit more carefully.
“Like… dinner and a movie?” Megumi asks, attempting to sound teasing rather than desperate and Yuuji’s cheeks get pink.
“That’s not what I meant!” He says quickly, and Megumi forces out a little laugh as he ignores the pang in his chest, and Yuuji pouts, “Stop teasing me.”
Megumi just shakes his head, continuing to throw his clothes in the washing machine as Yuuji swings his legs, looking at him expectantly, “Come on, you’re leaving me!”
“I’m only leaving for three days.”
“Three whole days!”
“You’ll be fine.”
Yuuji doesn’t respond at first, just hums as he kicks his feet lightly against the washing machine.
Megumi feels a little guilty for this, he’d love nothing more than to listen to Yuuji slurp noodles next to him while his eyes light up with the glow from the TV. But every time they hung out right before he left, it just made leaving that much harder. He’d think about Yuuji right up until he had to fight for his life, which wasn’t exactly the best focusing technique before missions.
He finishes putting his clothes in, leaning forward to turn it on when Yuuji hops off the machine, dusting off his pants.
“Okay. I’ll just say goodbye to you tomorrow before you leave. I’m gonna go for a run.” Yuuji says, giving him a smile before he heads towards the door. Megumi watches him reach the doorway before he sighs, cursing himself for being the weakest man on the planet.
“Will you at least bring napkins this time?”
Yuuji’s face lights up as he turns to nod quickly, fingers tapping excitedly on the doorframe.
“Yes, I can do that!” Yuuji replies, smiling wide, “We can make meatballs when I get back. You need to practice more.”
“Okay.” Megumi nods, and Yuuji nods back with a smile before he slips out of the doorway down the hall.
He stares at the door as it closes before he squats down, groaning as he pathetically holds his head in his hands, “Whipped. You are so fucking whipped.”
He sighs loudly, resting his elbows on his knees for a moment before he stands back up. Pulling out his phone to set a timer, he mindlessly shoves his way back through the door, slowly making his way down the hallway
His eyes glaze over as he opens up the news, flicking through the crime section, before he turns a corner and walks directly into something, banging his head into something equally as hard.
“Jesus, are you blind and stupid?” He looks up to see Kugisaki scowling at him, with her hands on her hips, “Watch where you’re going!”
“Sorry,” He shrugs, slipping his phone back into his pocket, “Wasn’t paying attention.”
“Clearly, you space case.” She shakes her head, moving to keep walking down the hall, but he speaks up quickly.
“Wait, Kugisaki.”
“What do you want? I’m about to do my nails with Maki.” Kugisaki groans, turning back around to face him.
“Have you seen my green crewneck?”
“Why would I be keeping track of your clothes?” She replies, rolling her eyes as she crosses her arms over her chest, and Megumi huffs a little.
“Shut up. Just thought you might’ve taken one during a movie night.”
“No way,” She shakes her head, “I always give them back before I leave. I don’t want to smell like a teenage boy.”
“We don’t smell bad.”
“You’ve never had to share a car after a mission with both of you. I think you’re blind to your own stink.” She wrinkles her nose as Megumi rolls his eyes and shakes his head.
“Yeah, ‘cause you’re smelling so fresh and flowery after missions too.”
“At least I have good perfume.”
“Ugh, whatever,” Megumi groans as Kugisaki grins, clearly happy with achieving her goal of annoying him, “So, you haven’t seen it?”
“Nope,” She shrugs, folding her arms over her chest, “Itadori didn’t take it?”
“No, he said he didn’t and I haven’t seen him wear it.”
“Hm.” She hums, bringing a finger up to tap against her chin as her eyes glint with something he can’t read, and he narrows his eyes at her.
“What?”
“Nothing,” She smiles knowingly, giving him a small, slightly evil looking smile, “I’ll keep an eye out.”
“Stop being weird.”
“Nah,” She laughs as she shifts to keep moving down the hall, “Let me know if you find it, ‘kay? I’m curious.”
“Whatever.” Megumi scoffs a little as Kugisaki sticks her tongue out at him before giving him a wave and walking down the hall.
He watches her leave for a second before he groans a little, rubbing his temples for a moment before heading back to his room to pack.
“Fushiguro, is that you? Are you okay? What happened? Are you hurt? Hello!? Hello!?! Why aren’t you answering me? Fushiguro!”
“Take a breath and I will.”
“You’re freaking me out!”
“Chill, I’m fine. Curse is gone and I am alive, so quit worrying so much,” Megumi rolls his eyes a little as he readjusts the phone on his shoulder, “I just lost my phone so I’m at a payphone.”
“How retro.”
“Shut up.”
“Why didn’t you call Ijichi? Or Gojo?”
“Like I know that idiot's number off the top of my head,” Megumi scoffs a little, although he knows its a lie as he looks out to the pouring rain outside, “Probably wouldn’t answer either.”
“You know mine?”
Megumi freezes, eyes locked outside before he quickly turns towards the phone, scrambling to come up with an answer that didn’t involve staring at Yuuji’s contact photo.
“When any of us are separated from the others, it’s always you,” Megumio tries to save himself, “Figured it’d be a good idea just in case.”
He cringes as he says it, shaking his head a little as he tries not to groan at his own stupidity, but Yuuji just laughs, “Yeah, you’re right. You’re so smart, Fushiguro. So you want me to call Ijichi for you?”
“Yeah, that’d be great,” Megumi breathes a sigh of relief, “Don’t think my location is working but I’m outside the assigned middle school.”
“At the payphone, yeah, okay! I’ll let him know,” Yuuji replies cheerfully, and he hears rustling in the background, “Everything go okay? You’re not hurt?”
“Yeah, I’m good.”
“You’re not hurt?” Yuuji repeats, a little firmer this time.
“No, Itadori, I am not hurt. It was easy.” Megumi rolls his eyes a little, but he can’t help but smile to himself in the privacy of the phone booth, and he leans against the wall.
“Okay, good,” Yuuji exhales heavily, “‘Course it was easy for you. When are you getting back? Are you leaving tonight?”
“I’m—”
Please insert another ten yen for another minute to continue this call.
“Okay, I don’t have any change left, so I gotta go. I’ll see you when I get back.”
“Okay,” Yuuji replies, and he can practically see his pout, “Tonight?”
“Yes, tonight.”
“Okay! Bye, Fushiguro!”
“Bye,” He shakes his head as he hangs up, before he groans and bangs his head against the wall, “Idiot, idiot, idiot.”
“Okay, so now I’m just officially losing my mind and all my clothes.” Megumi mutters to himself as he rifles through his closet again, his favorite black hoodie he always wore after missions now somehow missing after he came back. He’d thought about bringing it, but didn’t want to risk getting caught off guard and forced to fight in it. Megumi may feign nonchalance but he draws the line at getting curse ooze on his comfort hoodie.
Opening his closet again, he sighs as he moves to lazily rifle through his clothes again when he spots something. Shuffling his clothes back, he sees the green crewneck sweatshirt he’d been looking for before he left, tucked back in his closet, all the way at the end.
“How the hell did I miss that?” He mutters to himself, shaking his head.
He goes to pull it out, when something stops him in his tracks. Something that he, of all people, would definitely notice. Hesitantly, he slowly brings the sweatshirt up to his nose, sniffing once and immediately jolts his head back.
There was only one person who smelled like this, he would’ve recognized it anywhere because it smelled like the person that Megumi was desperately and embarrassingly in love with. The smell of next door, bright laughter and thoughtful, genuine actions. The smell of home.
“What the hell?” He whispers to himself, fidgeting the fabric between his fingers. He continues to stare down at it before his hands move without thinking and slowly bring it back up to his nose, and he inhales it until he feels lightheaded.
Pulling his head back, he stares down at the sweatshirt before tucking it back in his closet and he walks to collapse down on his bed, head in his hands.
Yuuji couldn’t be stealing his clothes, right?
Well, technically, he wasn’t exactly stealing them if he was putting them back. But why the hell would he be taking Megumi’s clothes to then just put them back in the first place?
He’d never seen Yuuji wearing any of them, other than the occasional borrowed sweatshirt during movie nights, but he always gave it back before he went back to his room, like Kugisaki did.
Maybe he’d been going through shirts and sweatshirts in training, and couldn’t afford to buy ones to replace them, but didn’t want to say anything?
But no, Yuuji didn’t really get that way about money, he never seemed to really care about it one way or another, too much or too little.
Could he have accidentally taken it from the wash and was too embarrassed to tell him?
But Yuuji never really gets embarrassed about anything, and he’d asked him directly if he’d seen it.
He didn’t need to go accusing Yuuji of something like that, especially if he was just being dumb and misreading things. Megumi would come in sounding like an idiot, and Yuuji would give him a sympathetic yet pitying look while he denied that he would ever want anything Megumi could give him.
He didn’t need that.
What he needed, was proof.
“Come in!”
Megumi opens the door to see Yuuji plopped on his stomach on his bed, watching a YouTube video on his laptop, and he smiles brightly as he sees him.
“Hey, Fushiguro!”
“Hey.”
“What brings you in today?” He grins, tilting his head as the glow from his laptop lights up his face.
“Just bored,” He lies, glancing around his messy room, eyes sticking to the obnoxious pinup poster still on his wall, the bane of his existence, “Wanted to see what you were up to.”
“You wanna hang out?”
“Sure.” Yuuji’s face brightens as he hoists himself up, closing his laptop as he settles onto his knees.
“Okay!” He exclaims excitedly, and Megumi shakes his head a little, an amused smile tugging on his face. Although they’d been friends for a while, and hung out all the time, it always made his heart race that Yuuji always lit up like a Christmas tree just from the simple prospect of spending time with his friends. If only he knew.
“Wait! I need to show you the new Mario Kart track I just unlocked,” Yuuji exclaims, jumping off of the bed and he walks backwards to watch Megumi, “My Switch is in the common room, I’ll be right back!”
Megumi just nods, slightly unable to believe his luck of getting Yuuji to leave so soon. As the door shuts, he waits about fifteen seconds before he quickly jumps up and makes his way to Yuuji’s unbelievably messy closet. He’d forgotten to factor in how much shit he’d have to rifle through to even find his clothes, but soon, he finds the hangers and starts to flip through them, muttering to himself.
“No. No. No. No— well, that one was mine at one point. No. No. No. N—”
Megumi freezes as he reaches the end of the closet. His favorite black hoodie, the one that was perfectly worn and oversized with the hoodie strings tied in a bow, the one he’d been looking for, was hung up neatly on the rail, tucked all the way to the side and hidden by the door.
He stares at it, his heart racing faster as his mind goes blank, but suddenly, he hears footsteps jogging down the hallway. He quickly shoves everything back in the closet, and closes the door before he launches himself back down on Yuuji’s couch just as the door opens back up.
“Okay, so I got a new Rainbow Road track, and you’re way better than me at those, so I need your help.” Yuuji grabs his controllers off the console, plugs it in before he hurriedly plops down on the couch next to Megumi, slinging his arm around the back and hands him a remote.
“You just need to stop overcorrecting when you drift.”
“It’s not my fault you always red shell me on turns.”
“Because you never save your items properly.”
“You’re too strategic!”
“And you’re not strategic enough.”
“It’s not fair you’re so good,” Yuuji pouts, flicking on the TV, before he stops and turns to him, “How did you get so good?”
“I didn’t have any friends so Tsumiki and I played a lot.” Megumi shrugs, and Yuuji frowns, leaning towards him with his arm still around the back of the couch. Megumi gulps as he’s met with the same scent marked on his sweatshirt in the next room, and he fights to keep focused.
“Aw, Fushi. Who wouldn’t want to be friends with someone as upbeat and cheerful as you?” Yuuji smiles innocently, but he’s too close and Megumi’s pulse picks up as Yuuji tilts his head like a puppy.
“Shut up.” Megumi rolls his eyes and shoves him off, his ears feeling hot.
“I’m just kidding. At least now you can show off your insane Mario Kart skills to your bestest friends,” Yuuji grins, and leans back, bringing his arm back from the back of the couch, “Now are you gonna be the black Shy Guy again?”
Megumi had spent about an hour in his room hyping himself up to go next door and talk to Yuuji.
He knew Yuuji was taking his clothes. And he knew he was doing it secretly. And he knew that Yuuji definitely would not want him to find out.
Yuuji was a kind, genuine, golden retriever of a person, however, he was not so high and mighty as to refrain from using white lies to his advantage. And Megumi just had to make sure he couldn’t weasel his way out of this one.
His black sweatshirt had reappeared that morning, sending him down a mental spiral for half the day while he tried to convince himself talking to Yuuji about it was the right decision for the afternoon.
He wasn’t entirely sure what he hoped to gain from it. He had a feeling he’d have to deal with some sort of a roundabout, indirect rejection from Yuuji. He’s too nice to reject him harshly or outright, which he appreciated, although he’d rather not have to deal with this at all and be a pining gay mess by himself.
But this whole thing was digging itself further into his brain, and he was slowly starting to drive himself even crazier than he already was. There was just no way he could do one more hour of this, much less the rest of high school.
Inhaling sharply, Megumi looks up at his door and pushes his way towards it, quickly walking up to knock on Yuuji’s door before he can change his mind.
“It’s open!”
Megumi pushes it open, and sees Yuuji sitting on his bed with a manga in his lap, head still down and reading.
“Itadori.”
“Oh, hey, Fushiguro!” He looks up and greets him happily, closing his book, “What’s up?”
“I need to ask you something.”
“Uh, okay…” Yuuji sits up and puts his manga down, looking him up and down as Megumi curses himself for sounding so vague and ominous, “What’s going on?”
Megumi looks at him for a moment, seeing the slight nerves in his eyes before he inhales sharply and forces it out.
“Why are you taking my sweatshirts?”
Yuuji’s face pales immediately, and he sits up straighter, putting his palms on the bed next to him.
“W-What?”
“Why are you taking my sweatshirts?” Megumi repeats, trying to make sure his voice is calm and even, a contrast with the almost deafening pounding inside his chest.
“I-I’m not,” Yuuji replies, nerves shaking in his voice, “I wouldn’t steal from you, Fushiguro.”
“I didn’t say you were stealing them,” Megumi narrows his eyes slightly, and he sees Yuuji gulp hard, “I said you were taking them.”
“I— uh, I-I’m—” Yuuji stutters out, eyes flitting around the room, looking at anything but Megumi’s face, “H-How do you know it wasn’t Kugisaki?”
“Because she wouldn’t wear my shit and if she did, she’d be obnoxious and obvious about it. Not hide it in her closet.” Megumi counters, and Yuuji’s face falls a little as stuttered, half-sentences keep falling from his mouth.
As he continues to mumble, Megumi narrows his eyes down at him, a little confused as to why Yuuji was reacting so weirdly.
“I already know it’s you, so don’t lie.”
“I, um, I-I can ex— well, I mean, I just, um, can we— um.” Yuuji is barely getting anything out as his face is an odd mixture of bright red with a drained, ghostly sheen passed over his expression. As he self consciously stammers in a most uncharacteristic Yuuji manner, Megumi’s narrowed eyes ease a little, and he takes a hesitant step towards him.
“Itadori?” Megumi’s voice softens as he scrunches his eyebrows a bit when he glances down and sees Yuuji’s hands shaking.
“It’s just when I miss you!” Yuuji blurts out loudly, before he quickly slams his hands over his mouth, his face now crimson red, practically steaming.
Megumi freezes, one foot hovering above the floor as he’s stopped in his tracks, his restarted heart now pounding against his chest.
“Miss me?”
“I— Oh, fucking hell,” Yuuji groans loudly, almost whining as he rubs his eyes, “I didn’t want you to find out.”
“Obviously.” Megumi scoffs a little, but in a more teasing way, and Yuuji looks up at him, opening and closing his mouth before he looks back down.
“I just… Shit, this is so embarrassing.
“Itadori, what’s going on?” Megumi asks, tilting his head to try and see his expression better. He’d looked sad for some reason, which was unusual for him, and Megumi really, really didn’t like it.
Yuuji looks back up, their eyes meeting for a moment before Megumi just nods, and Yuuji inhales before nodding back softly, and he looks back down.
“It’s just… Sometimes when you’re on missions alone, or far away, I just get a little anxious.” He starts off, looking down at his lap,
“Is that all? You just miss me?”
“It’s not just missing you to me, Fushi.” Yuuji grumbles to himself, but Megumi keeps his eyes on him until he glances up, and gives him another small nod, despite the nerves building in his stomach.
Yuuji keeps his gaze for a few seconds before he sighs, shaking his head as he speaks up.
“A month or two ago, you went to Kyoto, with Inumaki, to exorcise that big family of curses at that university. And you were gone for a week.”
“Yeah, I remember.”
“And while you were gone, I really couldn’t sleep well. I don’t normally sleep super well when you’re not here. I thought it was just because you’re next door, so I’m used to hearing you move around at night, before bed. But this time felt… different. It was way harder. So, while you were gone,” Yuuji looks down again, cheeks turning pinker, “I went into your room.”
“You went in my room while I wasn’t there?”
“I couldn’t help it, I needed to.” He replies quietly, and Megumi pauses, eyes flitting over Yuuji’s nervous and hunched over frame, and he feels a little guilty as he quickly realizes this was not really just about Yuuji being a little shit and stealing his clothes.
“It’s okay. Just tell me.” Megumi says softly, and Yuuji glances up for a moment before looking back down, and he continues.
“It just helped, being in there, because it smelled like you and reminded me of you but I-I didn’t sleep there, I promise! I just stood there for, like, five minutes!” Yuuji says quickly, looking up and shaking his head frantically, and Megumi can’t help but smile a little in amusement, “I’m not that weird!”
“Debatable. You eat fingers.” Megumi replies with a shrug as Yuuji pouts at him, looking back down at his hands in his lap.
Megumi keeps his eyes on him, his jaw clenching a little as he sees how small Yuuji looks right now. He hated when he got like this. He was so confident, loud and cheerful, he hated when he shrunk into himself like this, like he wasn’t the brightest person on the planet, like he wasn’t Megumi’s favorite person.
He sighs a little as he crosses the room and sits on the bed, scooching back until his back hits the wall, shoulder to shoulder with Yuuji, and he looks over at Yuuji’s hung head.
“Talk to me.”
Yuuji doesn’t reply, just keeps his head down as he fiddles with his sweatshirt, his shaky fingers slipping in and out of the fabric.
“Come on,” Megumi pushes, nudging him gently with his elbow, “We said no secrets, right?”
“It’s embarrassing.” Yuuji grumbles, keeping his head down.
“I’ll be the judge of that,” Megumi shrugs and Yuuji glances up nervously, and he nudges him again, “You can tell me anything. You know that.”
Yuuji looks up again, keeping his big, brown, and confusingly sad cow eyes up on him for a few moments, expression imperceptible. Megumi sees a smile twitch on his lips as Yuuji stares at him, before he sighs and looks back down sadly at his lap.
“On the third day you were gone, I fell asleep on the way to a local mission, and Nanami kinda chewed me out for my bad sleeping habits. So, that night, when I went to your room, I went to your closet. It was honestly just because I thought you had a sweatshirt of mine, but then when I opened it, it just… it was you,” Yuuji says quietly, faint smile ghosting across his face, “For a second, I thought you were actually there, standing next to me. So I couldn’t help myself and I took one.”
“But then, after a few days, it stopped really smelling like you, and started smelling like me,” Yuuji says with a sigh, “So before you came back, I put it back.”
Megumi just nods, letting himself process the fact that Yuuji was actively stealing his clothes because he missed him, and he was desperately not trying to implode. Although, his heart desperately wanted to ask Yuuji just how he missed him, if it was the same way Megumi missed him, if he could never go away again so neither of them ever felt like that again.
But his brain makes him wait, letting them both settle in the silence for a few minutes.
“How long have you been doing this?” Megumi asks, glancing over at Yuuji, whose hands are still fidgeting in his lap.
“About a month, maybe more. At first, it was just when you went away, and I’d put them back before you even got home so they wouldn’t smell like me. But then, I started bringing them with me on my own missions, and I think I got a little selfish and sloppy.”
“What do you even do with them?” Megumi asks curiously, and Yuuji’s face practically glows pink.
“I, uh,” Yuuji coughs, rubbing the back of his reddened neck, “Nothing really.”
“So you take them because they smell like me and do nothing except hang them in your closet.” Megumi deadpans as Yuuji squirms next to him.
He felt a little mean, teasing him like this, but he wanted to be sure that he wasn’t reading into this, that he wasn’t driving himself so insane with the possibility of hope that he was seeing things that weren’t there.
“I wore them,” Yuuji admits quietly, fiddling with his fingers, and Megumi’s heart stutters, “To sleep. And, um, like, cuddle with, I guess. It helped to be able to… smell you. It felt like you were here. It was comforting.”
“You…” Megumi inhales sharply, desperately trying not to pass out in case this was a dream and he’d wake up alone, “Cuddle my clothes because you like how I smell?”
“I sound like such a pervert, I know,” Yuuji whines, covering his face with his hands, “I swear, it didn’t feel this weird when I was doing it.”
“Sounds like what a pervert would say.”
“Fushiguro!” Yuuji whines again, face flushed bright red, and Megumi can’t help but laugh, “Stop making fun of me, this is so fucking embarrassing.”
“It’s not embarrassing.” He shakes his head, and Yuuji gives him an adorable pouty glare and Megumi has to hold himself back from smiling.
“Maybe a little,” Megumi just shrugs as Yuuji buries himself back under his hands, “But I’m not mad or anything.”
“You’re not?” Yuuji’s head jolts back up, eyes wide.
“Why would I be mad at you?” Megumi asks, tilting his head in confusion. He’d give Yuuji his lungs if he’d wanted them.
“I don’t know. It’s weird, your friend taking your clothes just because they miss you. You aren’t even gone that long on missions,” Yuuji looks down, playing with his fingers, “And… I know we’re friends. I like to think you’re my best friend.”
Megumi’s heart stops for a moment as his words settle over him. He and Yuuji had been doing almost everything together for months, and he knew he loved everything about Yuuji, he was easily his favorite person.
But Yuuji had a life before the last several months, a life with school and friends and classmates and clubs and other best friends that weren’t Megumi.
It had always made him a little insecure, the idea that a lot of his firsts with real friendship were old news to people like Yuuji and Kugisaki. But with Yuuji, he selfishly always wanted to be his favorite, the one he picked first, the one who always turned to, in everything.
“I don’t know if you see me like that too, but I do know we haven’t really known each other that long for what I did to be even somewhat normal. I just didn't want you to think I was weird.”
Megumi takes a moment, forcing his brain to think and not just blurt out something stupid just to wipe the sad expression off his face. He glances over at Yuuji, still playing with his fingers with his shoulders hunched, and he breathes in and out deeply once before speaking.
“Sure, but it’s just not a friend. It’s you,” Megumi shrugs, and Yuuji looks up, “And you are weird. But it’s not like both you, me or our friendship have ever been considered normal. I mean, I almost killed you the first day we met.”
Yuuji laughs, finally, and it makes Megumi’s heart skip a little faster, then he breathes a small sigh of relief when a little light comes back into his face.
“So,” Yuuji asks, still keeping his voice quiet, keeping his head down as he fiddles with the hem of his shirt, “You wouldn’t let Kugisaki take them?”
“Hell no,” Megumi scoffs, shaking his head, “Plus she’d probably end up cutting them up or some shit.”
“Mm.” Yuuji just hums, keeping his head down.
Silence overtakes them, the only noise coming from Kugisaki and Maki outside training way down at the field, their voices just barely audible above the sounds of the afternoon.
Megumi tries to wrap his head around everything that just happened, but he can’t help but feel disappointed. He’d tried not to get his hopes up that Yuuji taking his clothes really meant something, meant something more than being his best friend, although his heart still sped up when he replayed those words in his head.
“I— Fushiguro.”
Yuuji speaks up again, his voice soft and hesitant as he keeps his eyes on his lap.
“Yeah?” Megumi can’t bring himself to look over, so he maintains to lock his eyes out ahead of him, refusing to torture himself more by looking at Yuuji under the soft sun of the afternoon.
“There’s… another reason I liked taking your clothes.”
Megumi’s chest tightens as he hears the hesitation in Yuuji’s voice. He desperately tries to force himself to breathe normally, to just let Yuuji say what he needs to say before he can go and lock himself in his room.
“What’s that?”
“It makes me think of you.”
“Yeah, you mentioned that.”
“No, it’s because I always wish it was you.” Yuuji says quickly, practically in one breath.
Megumi’s brain takes a pause, restarting after a few moments as he blinks rapidly, and he turns to look at him.
“What?” He croaks out, eyes wide on Yuuji, who somehow looks even more flustered and nervous than he was before.
“I wished I was holding… you, not your clothes,” Yuuji manages to say, and he slowly looks up to Megumi and gulps, “I-I really miss you when you go away, Fushiguro. It’s really lonely here without you.”
“But what about Kugisaki, and everyone else? There's always someone here.” Megumi asks quietly, holding his breath as Yuuji just shakes his head a little.
“Sure, but,” Yuuji looks back down again, “It’s different when it’s you who’s gone. Everything seems… colder. It’s why I picked your sweatshirts in the first place.”
Megumi just stares at him, blinking twice to make sure he wasn’t hallucinating, but Yuuj’s terrified face is still directly next to him.
Yuuji opens and closes his mouth before he gulps, and takes a deep breath before he speaks quietly.
“I just… really, really like being around you, Fushiguro. And I really, really, really don’t like when you’re not here.”
Yuuji’s eyes are so hesitant, more nervous than they are when he stares death in the face. They were desperately trying to make him understand what Yuuji was really saying, and Megumi’s heart aches as he’s frozen, and Yuuji just gives him a small, sad smile and looks back down.
“I’m sorry, that was all really, really weird. I think I’m just in a weird mood right now, probably just Sukuna messing with my head. Just… Can we please just forget about all of this? Please?” Yuuji asks quietly, hanging his head as he looks at his hands, but when Megumi hears him inhale shakily, he snaps back into focus.
“Hey, look at me,” Megumi demands, and Yuuji slowly picks his head up, “Have I said anything back to you?”
“Um, no.”
“Then why are you acting like I don’t feel the same?”
“Because you don’t li—” Yuuji stops, blinking twice before his eyes widen, “Wait, what?”
“Why are you acting like I don’t feel the same?” He repeats, firmer this time as he turns towards him a little and Yuuji just stares back at him.
“W-Why would you?”
“Why would I? Why would I?” Megumi repeats, almost getting frustrated with how self conscious Yuuji is right now.
“Yeah,” Yuuji gulps, shaking his head a little, “I’m loud, and kind of annoying, and I talk too much.”
“And?” Megumi asks, looking at him expectantly, still irritated.
“And you’re just… really cool, and smart. And really fucking pretty. And you always make sure I’m okay, even if it puts you in more danger,” Yuuji replies quietly, eyes scanning Megumi’s face, “You always make sure I get to bed when I fall asleep on the couch. You help me in training without getting frustrated by how little I know.”
“Okay, well—” Megumi tries to get in, flushing slightly as his irritation is stubbornly melting under the warmth of his words, but Yuuji sits up a little, and words seem to just spill from his mouth.
“You always save me all the sweets you get, even Kugisaki asks for them first. And you’re really good with the dogs too, it’s really amazing how well you treat your Shikigami, even though you say they’re not pets and you never get annoyed when I ask to see them. And you’re so smart, I love hearing you talk about the things you read about, and even though sometimes I don’t fully understand it, you’re so patient with me when I know I’m being annoying. And your eyes are, like, really, really pretty. Once, I tripped over a trash can because the sun hit them just right when we were walking and I got really distracted for like ten meters but mine are just shit brown and—”
“Itadori,” Megumi interjects quickly, his face practically on fire, and Yuuji snaps his mouth shut, looking sheepish, “Will you please shut up now?”
Yuuji nods once, and Megumi nods back, “Thank you.”
“Sorry.”
“Don’t be,” Megumi shrugs, desperately hoping he seems casual as his heart hammers against his chest, practically breaking his ribs, “I do all of that because I like you, Itadori.”
“You—You do?” Yuuji breathes out, eyes widening as he sits up,
“Yeah. A lot,” Megumi replies, trying to calm the thick bundle of nerves sitting at the base of his throat, “I have for a long time. I like that you’re messy and loud and talk too much and annoy me just a bit sometimes.”
Yuuji just stares at him, eyes wide as his shoulders heave up and down a little, and Megumi tries not to laugh as he practically sees the gears turning in his head.
“So should I—”
“I think I’m in love with you.” Yuuji suddenly blurts out, his face frozen for a few moments before it pales and then erupts into crimson, “Oh my god. Oh my god. No, wait—”
“I love you too.” Megumi gets out quickly, before Yuuji can start to freak out again,
“You do?” Yuuji squeaks out, his eyes almost bugging out of his head.
“Yeah,” Megumi swallows hard as he nods, leaning his head back against the wall as he looks at Yuuji, “I do.”
“R-Really?” Yuuji says, eyes wide as his voice pitches up more.
“Yeah, you idiot,” Megumi laughs a little, “I’ve suspected it was you taking my clothes for a little while. I was hoping it was for the reason I thought it might be, but I just wasn’t sure.”
“I’m sorry for taking them.” Yuuji looks down, his cheeks turning pink.
“It’s okay, just ask me next time. You can take whatever you want.”
“Really? Even your black one?” Yuuji asks, cheeks flushing again as he looks down, smiling sheepishly, “That one was a bit risky, huh?”
“Yeah, little bit,” Megumi chuckles with a nod, “But yes, even the black one.”
“But that’s your favorite.” Yuuji teases playfully, tilting his head a little.
“So are you.” The words just slip out and Yuuji’s mouth opens in a little gasp, and Megumi feels his cheeks get hot.
“Fushiguro,” Yuuji grins, shifting a little to nudge him, “You flirt.”
“Shut up.” He grumbles and looks down, but he picks his head back up as he feels soft fingers brush his cheek, and he looks up to see Yuuji softly brushing the back of his fingers along his cheekbone.
“You’re my favorite thing in the whole entire world.” He whispers softly, eyes gently gazing at him and Megumi feels his heart stop before Yuuji’s words breathe life back into it.
They just stare at each other for a few moments, tension thick between them before Yuuji’s eyes get wide, like he’d forgotten something.
“Fushiguro, can I please kiss you now?” Yuuji sits up straight but keeps his hand on his cheek, turning to face him with big, excited eyes that keep flicking down to Megumi’s lips, like an overexcited puppy bouncing around for its dinner.
Megumi just smiles and nods, and Yuuji breaks into a grin, quickly reaching up to hold his face with two hands, and Megumi goes to hold his wrists lightly, staring up into the heat of Yuuji’s eyes.
He used to try and avoid looking at Yuuji’s eyes. They were beautiful, the color of liquid honey with a warmth that practically made you melt just by looking at you, and it was almost overwhelming to have such sincere eyes on him like that. But with those eyes gazing down so softly at him now, Megumi can’t help but regret all the time he could’ve spent looking into them.
Yuuji smiles at him once more, filling him with the comfort and feeling of home only he and his dumb pink hair can give him, before he closes his eyes and leans down to meet Megumi.
As soon as Yuuji’s lips touched his, Megumi knew he was done for.
Yuuji kissed him so gently, with so much care and sweetness, it almost made his heart hurt, and Megumi had to work to keep his brain awake instead of just melting into the sensation that is Yuuji. His grip on his wrists tighten slightly as Megumi wakes up a bit and moves to kiss him back harder. Yuuji tilts his head a little, hesitantly teasing his tongue along his bottom lip as Megumi lets him in, and they both lose themselves in each other.
Finally pulling away after Yuuji’s lungs were pushing out more air than they were taking in and Megumi had to convince him to breathe for at least a minute, they sat there on Yuuji’s bed, panting with their eyes down as they try to catch their breath.
Megumi’s brain was working overtime, trying to over analyze everything around him, every movement, every held back word, but he desperately tried to just let himself enjoy the unfamiliar elation settling comfortably in his chest. Which was easier than he thought with Yuuji’s thumbs brushing across his cheeks and his warm brown eyes gazing down at him like he was artwork.
“You’re amazing, Fushi. You’re so beautiful,” Yuuji whispers between heavy breaths, and then Megumi’s brain just goes blank as he just keeps whispering soft words, practically spilling out, “You’re everything to me. I never want to be anywhere without you, fuck, I feel like you’re the only reason I can even breathe— well, you kind of are. But anyway, I can’t stop thinking about you, Fushiguro, and it’s been torture but I just—”
“Megumi.” He finally interrupts as he corrects him quietly, and Yuuji’s cheeks flush a little as he quiets down and nods.
“Megumi,” Yuuji repeats softly, leaning his forehead against his as he smiles, finally catching his breath, “I love you.”
“I love you, too, Yuuji.” Megumi whispers, feeling the weight of how long he’d kept his feelings tucked away finally lifted, replacing itself with the featherlight knowledge that this sweet, considerate, dumb boy loved him back.
Yuuji’s face lights up, a flush creeping all the way down to his chest before he giggles a little bit and leans back in to kiss him again, so soft and sweet and so Yuuji that it makes Megumi’s head spin.
“I can get used to the sound of that,” Yuuji laughs a little, pulling back just a bit to lean his temple against the wall next to Megumi’s, smiling wide, “Actually sounds pretty for once, coming from you.”
“Shut up.” Megumi rolls his eyes, and Yuuji grins wider.
“You’re so not ready for all the compliments you’re about to get. Been saving them all up,” Yuuji grabs his hand, interlacing their fingers as he smiles, “Gonna be the best boyfriend ever.”
“Who said you’re my boyfriend?” Megumi teases, and Yuuji’s smile drops.
“Oh! Um, I’m sorry,” Yuuji’s hand freezes as he tenses up and quickly leans back, pulling his hand away, “I didn’t mean to assume that—”
“I’m kidding, you idiot.” Megumi laces their fingers together again as he grabs onto his shirt and pulls him back closer. He leans in to kiss him once before letting go to smack him upside the head.
“Ow!” Yuuji complains with a dramatic pout, rubbing the back of his head, “That hurt.”
“Good. Now stop being dumb.”
“Can’t help it.” Yuuji grumbles, looking back down, but Megumi brings his hands up to tilt his chin back up with his thumbs just resting under his jaw.
“I want you more than anything. For as long as you want me, for as long as I can have you. Is that clear enough?” Megumi says seriously, keeping his gaze firmly on Yuuji as he looks up, eyes wide, and he nods softly, and Megumi nods back, “Good.”
“But I’m gonna want you forever, Megumi.” Yuuji replies simply, softly smiling at him with the sweetest expression he’d ever seen, and Megumi’s heart practically bursts out of his chest as his cheeks get hot.
“Yeah, okay.” He mumbles, dropping his hands a little but Yuuji quickly takes them in his, pulling them into his lap.
“No question. You’re mine.” Yuuji says firmly, keeping his eyes on him, blazened just a little by the determination Megumi is so used to seeing during missions.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. All mine. No one else’s. Mine.” Yuuji pouts just a little bit, trying to hold firm, but Megumi just chuckles and shakes his head.
“Just yours.”
Yuuji smiles at him again, eyes flitting around his face before he suddenly wraps Megumi up in his arms and practically body slams him onto the bed.
“Oof.” Megumi wheezes out as Yuuji wiggles his way down his body, firmly wrapping his arms around his middle as he plops his cheek onto Megumi’s chest.
“What are you—
“Shhh.” Yuuji hushes him, readjusting his head against his chest as he keeps quiet for a few minutes, letting the soft afternoon sunshine peek through the blinds as they breathe in sync.
“Your heart is beating really fast.” Yuuji whispers with a little laugh, and Megumi’s cheeks get warm as he squirms a little.
“Don’t make fun of me.”
Yuuji doesn’t respond, just shifts to pull his hand out from around Megumi’s waist, sitting up a little. He moves to grab Megumi’s hand that was loosely around his shoulders and gently slips it under his shirt to place it on his chest, keeping his eyes below him.
Megumi looks up as Yuuji holds his gaze, and after a moment, he can feel the heavy thump of Yuuji’s heart against his warm skin, beating almost scarily fast, and he feels its speed up just slightly as Megumi keeps his eyes on him.
“Me too,” Yuuji whispers softly, and Megumi feels the air snatched from his lungs, “It’s always like this around you.”
Megumi is now fairly convinced he’s dreaming as Yuuji smiles, and gently holds his hand against his chest as he leans down to kiss him slowly.
His brain and body have turned to mush, pure putty under Yuuji’s hands and lips softly kissing his skin, touching him so delicately, but still possessive as ever. He can’t help but just kiss him back, just trying to breathe properly so this doesn’t end sooner than it needs to.
But it does, and Yuuji presses one last soft kiss to his lips before leaning back up. He brings his arm up to lean on his elbow, and his smile is so bright Megumi almost squints.
“So, when can I get my hoodie?” Yuuji grins, and Megumi rolls his eyes, laughing a little.
“You can’t just take all of my clothes now.”
“What?! You tease!” Yuuji whines a little, pouting, “You said I could!”
“Not all of them, you’re going to clean me out.”
“Come on, please?” Yuuji pleads, voice pitching up as he squirms on top of him, “You’ve got Gojo’s black card and all your clothes are so, so soft.”
“Because they’re not bought in packs of three like yours, you dummy. And you’ll stretch out my sweaters with those big ass shoulders.”
“Then you can just have mine if they do!”
“Then you’ll have no clothes.”
“Can’t I just take one or two sweatshirts for now? Maybe a t-shirt too? Or two T-shirts and a sweatshirt maybe? Maybe one jacket, one shirt? I can make you a list, you love lists!” Yuuji whines louder, batting his eyelashes a little bit up at him, and Megumi quickly realizes he is going to have a deep, love-hate relationship with Yuuji and his damn pleading, puppy dog eyes.
“Fine,” Megumi relents, and Yuuji’s eyes light up, “But do not put them in that shitshow of a closet. I think I saw a mouse in there.”
“You did not,” Yuuji laughs, shaking his head, “I’m messy, but I’m not dirty.”
“That’s the same thing.”
“I disagree.”
“Is that why none of your socks match?”
“It’s… unrelated.”
“Mhm.” Megumi hums as Yuuji smiles up at him, before he shifts next to him on the bed, and pulls him into his chest tightly.
Megumi melts into his side, curling into his chest as Yuuji sighs loudly, leaning to softly press his lips to Megumi’s forehead, lingering for a moment before he slumps his cheek on his head.
They lay there in silence for a while, wrapped around each other, just listening to the birds outside the window as the afternoon sun slowly sank into the trees, gradually turning the room a sweet shade of orange, warm and lulling.
“Megumi?” Yuuji whispers softly, kissing his cheek lightly before his lips ghost over his ear.
“Mhm?”
“I love you. More than anything. I just wanted to tell you.”
Megumi blushes, not caring about faking indifference or casualty or anything, he just wants to hear that in his head on a loop.
He curls in closer, shifting his head to the middle of Yuuji’s chest, and he smiles as he hears the low sound of his heartbeat. Closing his eyes, he lets himself focus on the rhythmic thuds below, focus on how it’s really Yuuji’s heart underneath him right now, beating for him.
He didn’t know what would happen. He didn’t know how long they had until something unspeakable happened to one of them. He didn’t know how he would react if he lost Yuuji. But he didn’t care.
All he cared about was Yuuji’s fingers trailing up and down his arms, and the sweet whispers against his ear that made him feel like he was untouchable.
“Your heartbeat has slowed a little.” He says quietly, and Yuuji hums, leaning down to kiss his head.
“Because I’m happy,” Yuuji mumbles against him before he pulls back, sighing a bit as he holds him tighter, “You make my heart do all sorts of weird shit.”
“Speaking of, can I ask you something?” Megumi asks, shifting a little bit against him.
“Yeah, anything, Megs.” Yuuji hums happily, nuzzling his nose and cheek further into Megumi’s hair.
“Did you do any freaky shit with my clothes?”
“ Megumi!”
“I’m just curious.”
“Stop it,” Yuuji huffs out, his cheeks now warm against Megumi’s forehead as he brings him up closer, tightening his arms around him, “This whole thing is already embarrassing enough.”
“So, is that a yes?”
“… Maybe just once.”
“Knew it. Freak.”
“You asked!”